Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

For the list, see List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom.

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
Flag of the United Kingdom
Incumbent
Keir Starmer
since 5 July 2024
Style
TypeHead of government
StatusChief Minister of the Crown
Great Office of State
Member of
Reports to
Residence
AppointerThe Monarch
(with their choice limited to the person who can command the confidence of the House of Commons)[1]
Term lengthAt His Majesty's pleasure
First holderSir Robert Walpole
DeputyNo fixed position; often held by:
Salary£166,786 per annum (2024)[2]
(including £91,346 MP salary)[3]
Website10 Downing Street
Political offices in the UK government
Arms of the British Government
Arms of the British Government
List of political offices

The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet, and selects its ministers. As modern prime ministers hold office by virtue of their ability to command the confidence of the House of Commons, they sit as members of Parliament.

The office of prime minister is not established by any statute or constitutional document, but exists only by long-established convention, whereby the monarch appoints as prime minister the person most likely to command the confidence of the House of Commons.[4] In practice, this is the leader of the political party that holds the largest number of seats in the Commons. The prime minister is ex officio also First Lord of the Treasury (prior to 1905 also the official title of the position), Minister for the Civil Service, the minister responsible for national security,[5]: p.22  and Minister for the Union.[6] The prime minister's official residence and office, by virtue of being the First Lord of the Treasury, is 10 Downing Street in London.[7]

Early conceptions of the office of prime minister evolved as the "Primus inter pares" or "first among equals", however that does not differentiate on status and responsibility upon whoever is holding office. Historically, the prime minister has never been the first among equals at any time prior to 1868. Until now, that characterisation of the prime minister is reflective of the democratic nature of their position. The power of the prime minister depends on the support of their respective party and on the popular mandate.[8] The appointment of cabinet ministers and granting of honours are done through the prime minister's power of appointment.[9][10] The prime minister alongside the cabinet proposes new legislation and decide on key policies that fit their agenda which is then passed by an act of parliament.[11]

The power of the office of prime minister has grown significantly since the first prime minister, Robert Walpole in 1721. Prime ministerial power itself evolved gradually alongside the office itself which have played an increasingly prominent role in British politics since the early 20th century.[12] During the premierships of Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher, prime ministerial power expanded substantially and their leadership in the office were described as "presidential" due to their personal yielding of power and tight control over the cabinet.[13][14] The prime minister is regarded as one of the world's most powerful political leaders in modern times.[15] As the leader of the world's sixth largest economy, the prime minister hold significant domestic and international leadership alongside being the leader of a prominent member state of NATO, the G7 and G20.[16][17]

58 people (55 men and 3 women) have served as prime minister, the first of whom was Robert Walpole taking office on 3 April 1721. The longest-serving prime minister was also Walpole, who served over 20 years, and the shortest-serving was Liz Truss, who served seven weeks. The current prime minister is Keir Starmer, who succeeded Rishi Sunak on 5 July 2024, following the 2024 general election.[18]

  1. ^ Andersson, Jasmine (31 August 2022). "Queen to appoint new prime minister at Balmoral". BBC News.
  2. ^ "Salaries of Members of His Majesty's Government – Financial Year 2022–23" (PDF). 15 December 2022.
  3. ^ "Pay and expenses for MPs".
  4. ^ "The principles of government formation (Section 2.8)". The Cabinet Manual (1st ed.). Cabinet Office. October 2011. p. 14. Retrieved 24 July 2016. Prime Ministers hold office unless and until they resign. If the prime minister resigns on behalf of the Government, the sovereign will invite the person who appears most likely to be able to command the confidence of the House to serve as prime minister and to form a government.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference manual was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Minister for the Union". GOV.UK. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
  7. ^ "About us - Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  8. ^ PoliticalScience (26 May 2021). "UK Prime Minister's Position - Political Systems". Political Science. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  9. ^ "How government works - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  10. ^ "Governance". UK Honours System. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  11. ^ "The executive". The Constitution Society. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  12. ^ Blick, Andrew; Jones, George (7 June 2010). "The power of the Prime Minister". History & Policy.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ^ "Why Tony Blair's Leadership Journey Failed". Harvard Business Review. 8 September 2010. ISSN 0017-8012. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  14. ^ Beckett, Charlie (13 April 2013). "Margaret Thatcher: how she reshaped politics and political communications". LSE Blogs.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. ^ Koop, Avery (20 January 2021). "History Visualized: The World Leaders In Positions of Power (1970-Today)". Visual Capitalist.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  16. ^ Seldon, Anthony (2021). The Impossible Office?: The History of the British Prime Minister. Cambridge University Press (published 6 May 2021). p. 87. ISBN 978-1316515327.
  17. ^ "Prime Minister to drive forward UK growth as he meets world's leading economic powers at G20". GOV.UK. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
  18. ^ Culbertson, Alix (5 July 2024). "'Our work is urgent and we begin it today': Sir Keir Starmer says in first address as prime minister". Sky News. Retrieved 5 July 2024.